Democrats want party- switcher disqualified (La.)

[Nambe]

The Associated Press

The Louisiana Democratic Party says it will try to have U.S. Rep. Rodney Alexander, who switched at the last minute of qualifying to the Republican Party, disqualified from the Nov. 2 ballot or recalled if he wins re-election.

State party chairman Mike Skinner said he and other party attorneys were researching a possible court challenge to Alexander being on the ballot. The deadline for filing the challenge is Friday.

Skinner said a decision would be reached in a day or two. ..

In the meantime, Robert Matsui, chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, demanded that Alexander return $193,000 raised for his 2002 race and $70,000 he has received this year from Democrats.

Six staff members of Alexander's office, including Chief of Staff Brian Smoot, resigned Monday, Smoot said.

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[freetobegay]

1. I hope they tar & feather his ass!

[Dover]

2. I hope they drown this swampscum in the bayou!

eom

[WI_DEM]

3. let's get a real democrat who can beat his ass

in November.

[Bandit]

12. That is the whole point... He switched after the deadline

so we could not put up a Democrat to run. It is a very low life thing to do and possibly illegal. Very Republican thing to do I should have said.

[The Flaming Red Head]

40. A real dem in Louisiana?

Good luck.

[CBHagman]

4. Treachery should be dealt with accordingly.

It's pretty the GOP doesn't care about playing nice or playing fair. It's time to force switchers to return funds, if they don't already, or answer to the voters.

[The Backlash Cometh]

5. Simple question:

In switching party affiliation at the last minute, did he deprive the Democrats from running another candidate in the race? In other words, are there no other Democratic candidates running?

[sniffa]

6. i beLieve that is the case

that he switched on the eve of the deadLine.

[UpInArms]

7. from the article linked

Former state Rep. Jock Scott, of Alexandria, is the other Republican in the race. He said Monday that will he will not withdraw. The only other candidate is little- known Monroe businesswoman Zela "Tisa" Blakes, who filed as a Democrat.

[yankeeinlouisiana]

9. Wouldn't it be a kick if she won!!

If I were in that district I would be voting for her. I think the only thing Rodney did was to "switch" himself out of a job!!

[Rose Siding]

20. I'd be voting for her too

I keep hearing she's a long shot, but without specifics and I can't find any info about her.

[trogdor]

31. If anyone has a way of contacting her...

...I'd be happy to get her campaign website up and running. I have some experience with that sort of thing. Can you imagine someone getting elected to the House of Representatives who ran her online contributions through PayPal and her swag store through Cafe Shops?

[funkybutt]

32. working on it...info on Democratic candidate...we'll be needing DU support

see this:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=155x401

[Rose Siding]

33. Thank you

That's great. Has she contacted DFA? They may be willing to offer support, as well.

I couldn't find anything on google about her. When there's a site to donate (and some issue positions), will you post it prominently? I'm in WA state but I'm interested in her.

[funkybutt]

37. I'll keep the DU updated

I have family in that district and we're watching the race very closely. Glad to hear there are those out there who would rather stay informed on her instead of jumping to the "she's a joke" conclusion. I'd have to say that the fact that she's the ONLY democrat in the race pretty much blows the "joke" theory out of the water. *I hope*

I'll keep the DU informed. I'm sure she'll be needing all the help she can get. Thanks for your concern/interest.

[jus_the_facts]

10. she's NOT a business woman...she's a *domestic engineer*...

....and a JOKE! x(

[jus_the_facts]

8. there is one dem in the race....a HOUSEWIFE...

....who doesn't have a snowball's chance in HELL! :evilfrown:

[Rose Siding]

21. You say that like it's a bad thing

Lots of stay-at-home moms have experience in community orgs like the PTA, while CEO's can screw up the presidency.

What are the viable complaints about her that make her a poor candidate?

[jus_the_facts]

25. I know how politics works in MY area....and she's a JOKE.....

.....she's POOR and a minority...that's fodder in these parts! :eyes:

[Rose Siding]

30. How is she on the issues?

Maybe being a poor, minority, housewife aren't as damaging as the willingness of people to concede that those things make her a "joke".

Why was she challenging Alexander? If it was because she had some insight into how untrustworthy he is, she's one up right now.

Do you know her positions or was this just a lark or something?

[funkybutt]

34. being a housewife doesn't make her unqualified

it's unfortunate that people are so judgemental. I've been told that she is a true democrat. People have been suspecting this would happen for quite some time. There were rumblings in the state party but people were told to keep quiet and others were ignored. Please read about her at

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=155x401

From what i've read she seems to be good people. I'd vote for her in a minute over that poser. She is not well known but she entered this race for a reason. Now, she's the only democrat on the ticket. I think she DOES have a chance! If she can surround herself by good people and get the people out to vote. As democrats, I think we need to rally around her!

[jus_the_facts]

35. never heard o'her at all untill this story broke.....

.....but regardless of her position on the issues...the way politics goes here...she'll be regarded as a joke....just wait and see....if I'm wrong I'll conceed to bein' a moran...but I trust my instincts from my experience....

[The Backlash Cometh]

28. Some of us even go in like bulls in a china shop

on community development issues. Of course, alot of the bravado is due to ignorance. If we actually knew how corrupt the system was before we started, we probably wouldn't risk it.

But, God works in mysterious ways. Someone has to do the dirty work.

[The Backlash Cometh]

27. It's time to start a revolution.

Housewives unite! Miracles have been known to happen.

[jus_the_facts]

29. not in louisiana mon ami......

:(

[wicket]

11. Good!

What he did was really dispicable, not that he switched parties (good riddance) but that he did it so no Democrat would be on the ballot opposed to him. He deserves whatever they can throw at him! :grr:

[Freddie Stubbs]

13. They can't recall him

Members of Congress are not subject to voter recall.

[TahitiNut]

14. Nonsense. Recalls are legislated at the state level.

Louisiana provides for such special elections. Recall differs from another method for removing officials from office - impeachment - in that it is a political device while impeachment is a legal process. Impeachment requires the House to bring specific charges and the Senate to act as a jury. In most of the eighteen recall states, including Louisiana, specific grounds are not required, and the recall of a state official is by an election.

In Louisiana, any elected official other than a judicial official can be recalled. A recall election would be scheduled if a petition gained the signatures of 1/3 of all eligible voters at the time of the original election. Louisiana provides 180 days for such a petition drive.

For comparison, California recall petition requirements are substantially lower. California requires 12% of the votes cast in the last election (far less than "eligible voters") for the official being recalled, 1% from each of 5 counties, and provides 160 days for petitioning.

[Freddie Stubbs]

15. But federal officials are not subject to them

The qualification and terms of members of Congress are set by the constitution. That is why state term limits laws have been struck down by the court, and felons can run for Congress in states where they are not eligible to vote.

If he does get on the ballot and is elected, the only way that he can be kicked out is if the House votes to expel him, which is an unlikely scenario.

[TahitiNut]

19. I stand (sit) corrected. According to the CRS, current Constitutional ...

... interpretation holds that view. I'm not sure I agree with the reasoning, however, and question whether or not it might be reversible. I'm inclined to believe that the current Supreme Court would find a way to condone a recall election if the individual were a Republican who switched to Democrat in the same manner.

Here's a PDF of the CRS report: "Recall of Legislators and the Removal of Members of Congress from Office"

[gasperc]

16. glad to see they are moving fast and hard on this

and his entire staff resigned. You'd think he would have talked to them, at least the day of the announcement. But maybe he figured they knew his intentions, yada, yada, yada

[jus_the_facts]

26. I talked to one of his staff awhile back and he DEFENDED him tooth'n'nail.

.....sayin' how the pukazoids were offerin' him a shitload o'money to switch...and how he wasn't gonna do it...heh...just a lyin' sack of shit he was and made 'em all look like FOOLS for defendin' him! :eyes:

This is why I'm extremely cynical about politics now...you can't trust anything or anybody anymore....refuse to hope for better days now....I'll keep attempting to fight the good fight...wtf ever that means anymore. x(

[gasperc]

17. they should seek recourse through courts

the last minute annoucement put the residents of his district at a large disadvantage for having a fair oppurtunity to select their representative.

[Freddie Stubbs]

22. These last minute shenanigans aren't that rare

Although the party switching aspect of it is. Sometimes an incumbent will announce their retirement at the end of the filing deadline, so that their hand-picked choice (often their son) is the only one running. It is sneaky, dishonest, underhanded, and perfectly legal.

[jacksonian]

18. if the woman Dem quit the race

would the Dems be able to name a replacement?

[Wabbajack]

24. Nope

not under Louisiana's strange "jungle primary" system, she is not the Dem nomminee. We need to change Louisiana elction law so they can have normal elections.

[Wabbajack]

23. Congressman can't be recalled

and sadly it's a puke district, it took a perfect storm for alexander as a conservative Dem to win by less than 1%.

[mountainvue]

36. Good!

Fight back Dems!

[kentuck]

38. Baloney !

They knew he was a Republican when they were giving him all that money and support. He was a DINO. No difference. Lay down with dogs - get up with fleas. He's a traitor but a predictable traitor. And he's not the only person with the potential to stab us in the back.

[funkybutt]

39. wouldnt republican voters be weary?

how could they trust someone who so recently "switched". Maybe this could split the vote quite significantly.

I really feel that the La state democratic party really dropped the ball on this one. People have been voicing their consern about this guy for a long time! This is no shocker...